


Living is an awfully big adventure

by rufferto



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Have not decided yet, Hurt/Comfort, Mystery, No Romance, No Sex, No Underage Sex, Peter Hale and Bobby Finstock when they are younger., Peter is a sweet baby who needs protection!, This may eventually have Chris/Peter when peter is older, bb!Peter Hale, maybe a little romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-28
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-08-27 11:19:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8399659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rufferto/pseuds/rufferto
Summary: Peter’s eyes drifted to the guns on Chris’ hip and back up to the Argent. The hunter. He looked down at the ground and hoped it would be over quick. Maybe then he could be with Mamma. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep but the book last night was Peter Pan, and that was Peter’s favorite. He loved listening to Chris Argent’s voice when he read to his daughter. It felt just like when Mamma used to read to him …before she… before all the blood. His voice was warm and inviting. He called her pumpkin. Mamma had a pet name for him too. He was her Little Prince.THE ONE in which they first met when Peter was 10 years old and went missing for three months after his mother's violent death only to wind up in the garden of notorious hunters. Chris is drawn in to protecting him from whatever killed his mother.5/20/2018 NOTE: This fic is not being continued. Author can't figure out how to end it. Sorry. NOTE: The relationship between Chris and Peter is Father/Son. Chris is Peter's adopted Father. This is not Petopher in the traditional sense.





	1. Chapter 1

It was well past dawn when Peter blinked awake to a pair of boots standing right by his head. The grass was wet due to a spatter of morning rain and his hair was plastered to his head. He shivered slightly and drew his coat over his shoulders. He looked up to the person who inhabited the boots. Just his luck, Christopher Argent had found him. Peter’s lips trembled, he must have fallen asleep.

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” Chris reached down, caught Peter by his shirt collar and hoisted the bedraggled kid to his feet.

Peter hadn’t spoken for three months. Not because he couldn’t, but he didn’t want to. He gave Chris a terrified look and tried to struggle out of his hold.

“Easy kid, easy. I’m not going to hurt you.” Chris held on to him.

Peter’s eyes drifted to the guns on Chris’ hip and back up to the Argent. The hunter. He looked down at the ground and hoped it would be over quick. Maybe then he could be with Mamma. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep but the book last night was Peter Pan, and that was Peter’s favorite. He loved listening to Chris Argent’s voice when he read to his daughter. It felt just like when Mamma used to read to him …before she… before all the blood. His voice was warm and inviting. He called her pumpkin. Mamma had a pet name for him too. He was her Little Prince.

“Jesus, you’re soaked through.” Chris ran gestured towards the door. “Let’s get you inside and warmed up.”

Peter shook his head violently. He could not go into a hunter’s lair! He could not. He tried in vain to get out of that vice grip but he didn’t have his full werewolf strength yet. That wouldn’t come until he hit puberty.

“Can’t you talk?” Chris asked in a gentler tone as he loosened his grip. “You can understand me though, nod if you can, okay? There’s nothing to be scared of.”

Peter nodded, still terrified. “I’m… P-p… Peter.” He stuttered. The first person in the three months he’d talked to since his Mamma died was a hunter.  He was a terrible, awful person. His Mamma would be so disappointed. He sniffled loudly.

“Well, Peter. My name is Chris Argent. My wife Victoria is making coco and waffles for our daughter. Would you like some? You really need to come in and get warm if you’ve been out here all night. It’s freezing.” Chris let go of him briefly to shrug out of his jacket and tuck it over Peter’s shoulders.

Peter absolutely loved hot chocolate. Especially with marshmallows…he was also partial to fluffy waffles and he hadn’t eaten in a long while. His appetite had been gone almost as long as his voice. Chris’ jacket was nice and warm…it smelled of delicious spices…and gun oil. He should be terrified of the smell of gun oil. He drew the jacket around his shoulders and looked up wide-eyed at Chris. He knew he should flee. They would be so angry if they found out what he’d been doing.

“You’re skin and bones, Kid. Come on, have something to eat at least.” Chris held out his hand.

Peter looked at the hand. He wondered how many of his kind Chris Argent had killed. He looked up at the hunter’s kind eyes and couldn’t associate those with death.

“Good grief. With those eyes you’re going to be a heart breaker when you grow up.” Chris chuckled.

Peter ended up taking Chris’ hand and felt a tingling sensation go through his body to his very bones. He blushed shyly and nodded.

He walked in with Chris, almost afraid to encounter Mountain ash. He hated that, it burned against his skin and gave him a huge headache. No Ash here. A crackling fire burned in the living room fireplace and he felt instantly warmer. “Victoria?” Chris called for his wife.

Victoria was a beautiful redhead with long hair down to her waist dressed in a housecoat emerged from the kitchen. An adorable two year old girl hid behind her and peeked out curiously at Peter. She had flour on her hands and was likely trying to ‘help’ in the kitchen.  “Who’s this young man?” She gave her husband a questioning look and lowered her gaze down to the ten year old. “My goodness, dear…were you outside all night?”

Chris sat Peter down in an easy chair right next to the fire and fetched a blanket. “I found him in the garden.”

The two grownups exchanged looks with each other, obviously worried. Peter noted they were very young to be parents, but they were hunters. He looked down at his hands and scrunched in on himself. He was just so hungry…and the smell coming from the kitchen was delicious. He lifted his eyes back up and Victoria caught her breath. “He looks just like…”

“I know,” Chris nodded.

“This is very unwise,” Victoria gave her husband a soft sigh. “You look hungry, dear. Would you like something to eat? You should make the call, Christopher. He’s been missing for a long time.”

Peter nodded vigorously. He rubbed his sore throat but her words made him jump to his feet in fear. He scrambled back and nearly knocked over a lamp in his haste to run for the door. Chris immediately got in his way.

“Easy, take it easy kid.” Chris said gently. “We’re not going to hurt you. You are Peter Hale, aren’t you?”

Peter shook his head miserably. He didn’t want to be a Hale. He didn’t want to go back to that house. Mamma wasn’t in the house anymore. Only her blood.

“He’s clearly traumatized, Victoria.” Chris sighed. “I’m not making the call yet until I have more information. I promise, Peter. You’re safe here.”

Peter slowly relaxed. He looked over at Victoria and tried to look as innocent as he possibly could. They were hunters and he was a werewolf. A part of the boy hoped they would take pity on him and end his suffering…and another part of him wanted to taste those delicious waffles.  He shrugged again and his stomach rumbled.

“Come on then,” Victoria relented finally. Her face softened, “I heard what happened to your mother. It wasn’t us.” She held out her hand. “This is our daughter Allison. Do you like chocolate chips?”

Peter shuffled forward and took Victoria’s hand. He loved chocolate chips. His voice still sounded so odd in his throat so he fell back to not speaking. He smiled instead and nodded tentatively.

Chris watched as the boy was clearly starved. He dove into the food like it was his first meal in days. He ran a hand through his hair. At almost Twenty, Chris already had a two year old daughter. It was the best way he could get his father off their backs. He and Victoria both wanted better for their family and he loved her truly for it. It had become clear to them both if they didn’t get married, their families would make their lives a living hell. They would watch over Beacon Hills and ensure that the Hale werewolf pack was kept in check. That was their job. Recently matters had gotten out of hand. Three months ago someone had murdered the Hale Alpha and they were still trying to figure out what happened.

A young werewolf who witnessed the act vanished and his much older sister took up the Alpha position. The pack was still looking for Peter Hale. The pack had also already come to interrogate them. Peter was the only one who could tell them what happened to his mother.  Chris had been half-afraid they would find his body as well. That’s why he and Victoria did things their own way. Hunters tended to shoot first ask questions later or not at all. If there was another player around capable of killing Alphas they needed to get to the bottom of it.

How Peter wound up in his garden he had no idea. They were under a tentative truce with the Hales to find the one responsible for the Alpha’s murder. One thing Chris knew was that no one could know they had found Peter Hale. Not yet. If he knew the identity of the killer, the killer would surely come for him.

As for Allison, she seemed quite fascinated by Peter. His daughter laughed delightedly when she kept pushing things onto his plate and he wolfed them down. His hair was a disaster and he looked so thin. Unnaturally so. What happened to him? Chris was surprised by a fierce urge to protect the boy. He needed them.

Victoria exchanged a look with Chris and gestured at Peter’s neck. When the boy bent over to eat the marks were clear. It looked like someone had scarred Peter’s back with the beginning of a circle of vengeance. He wasn’t sure how far it went down or why Peter wasn’t healing but he supposed they’d find out later. He caught his breath and wanted to punch something.

“Jesus,” Chris couldn’t help but pale at the sight. “What happened to you, kid?” He felt a sudden rage build up within him and stepped forward with a clenched fist.

Peter glanced up from his plate mid fork to mouth. He gazed at Chris fearfully and looked over at Victoria.

Victoria’s lips pursed. “Easy, Christopher, you’re scaring him. It’s alright dear. Finish your food. He’s just mad at whoever hurt you.”

Peter looked back at Chris hesitantly and gave him a small smile. He looked like he had no idea what they were talking about.

“He’s not going back to the pack until I find out who is responsible for marking him up.” Chris snarled.

Victoria stared at her husband and nodded. She happened to agree. For now, they would keep Peter with them. He looked like he very much needed the attention. Poor boy. Her heart went out to him, even if he was a werewolf.

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

Chris knew that what they were doing was dangerous. He had a small daughter to worry about and he had let a Werewolf into their home. Granted, Peter Hale was a ten year old traumatized child but he was still a werewolf. When the kid was finished eating, he hopped off the table and started to help Victoria clean up without being asked to.

“You don’t have to do that, Peter. You’re our guest.” Victoria said gently but Peter looked so fearful that she relented and let him work. He seemed to be used to it, as though he spent a lot of time in the kitchen and that worried Chris even more. A kid his age shouldn’t know his way around the kitchen that well. He was also somewhat meticulous. He wouldn’t put anything where it wasn’t supposed to go. He watched Victoria intently to see where she put things.

He clearly had a bad case of OCD. When he was done, Victoria patted him on the head and sent him over to Chris. “He needs a bath and some clothes to wear that aren’t threadbare. We don’t have time to go shopping today.”

“He can wear one of my shirts.” Chris decided.

“That will do, yes.” Victoria agreed.

“We’ll pull out the cot to our room. I don’t think he should be on his own.” Chris looked at Peter.  

Peter looked back and forth between them, his expression didn’t change. It was drawn and tired. He yawned and looked down at the floor, shoulders hunched. Allison stared at him and try and get his attention. When he looked back up she beamed at him. He looked at her like he was weirded out. She magnanimously offered him her sippy cup.

“’Jus!” Allison offered him sweetly, clearly of the mind that juice made everything okay, always. It only had maybe one mouthful left in it.

Peter stared at it and a little corner of his lips turned up slightly as he tried to fight a smile.

Chris and Victoria both stared in amazement when Peter took the cup from Allison and sipped from it gravely.

“Thank you.” Peter told the two year old as he gave her a ghost of a smile.  

She reached out and batted his arm with her plastic spoon playfully. “Jus!”  Her face was still a bit of a mess. Peter calmly put the cup down and took a cloth from the baby wipes. Very gently he took one of her hands and cleaned up the sticky mess from breakfast. Then her chubby cheeks. Clearly, he had experience with small children.

Victoria and Chris exchanged looks. He was going to be just fine with Allison.

Peter lifted her up out of the high chair gently and let her down on the ground. She immediately grabbed his hand intent on dragging him out to the living room to get him to play with her.

“Darling, I think Peter’s very tired.” Victoria told her daughter. “He needs to take a bath and get comfortable.”

Allison started to cry. “Play!”

“I will later, but your mamma is right.” Peter’s voice sounded foreign to himself. He hadn’t spoken so many words in a long time. He also sounded very grown-up for his age. His words were carefully chosen and spoken very clearly. “Thank you.” He looked up at Victoria. “I’m sorry to be so much trouble.” He felt a little better after having eaten. Now he was just tired.

Finally, the kid was speaking. Chris came back into the kitchen and Peter’s eyes settled on him. It was uncanny how odd having those big blue eyes on him felt. “Are you feeling any better?” He asked the boy and took care not to let his voice sound harsh or demanding.

“My stomach is full.” Peter replied, completely dodging the question about feelings.

“Do you know who you are? Where you are?” Chris asked again. “Who we are?”

“Yes.” Peter nodded. He looked down at the ground.

“Why us?” Chris asked softly.

“You were reading a book I liked.” Peter’s voice got a bit smaller, less confident. He sniffled. “I liked your voice.” he paused and looked away. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”

“Where have you been all this time? Why are you hiding from your pack?” Chris looked at him seriously this time, he spoke a little more sternly but no less kind.

“More to the point, HOW are you hiding from your pack?” Victoria gave the boy an incredulous look.

Peter held up his arm. He had a wooden bracelet on that was intricately decorated with tribal artwork and looked like it was handmade and ancient. “Mamma gave it to me before she…” he swallowed. “She said that I needed to hide and stay hidden and this would help me.”

“Did you see who killed your mother, Peter?” Chris asked, earning himself a glare from Victoria.

Peter took a shaky breath and nodded.

“Can you tell us who did it?” Chris pressed.

Peter shook his head miserably. “I don’t want to be Peter Hale. Just Peter. I’m just Peter.” He sat down on the floor and pulled his legs up. He hugged his knees and buried his face in his arms, shuddering.

“Hey, I’m sorry.” Chris moved closer. He put a hand on Peter’s shoulder and the boy’s shuddering ceased. He knelt down and the boy turned into him. Chris wrapped his arms around the boy and held him close as Peter cried. He gave Victoria a helpless shrug.

Neither of them had any idea what to make of that.

“Shhh. It’s alright, I’ve got you.” Chris held the boy in his arms and stroked his hair. “You’re safe here. We’re not going to make you go anywhere, Peter.”

“Can I be Peter Argent now?” Peter muttered in Chris’ arms. “I don’t want to be a Hale. I don’t want to be a Hale.”

Chris picked him up. It was easy, Peter was barely sixty pounds. “I’ll take him upstairs. We need to get to the bottom of this, Victoria.”

“I agree.” Victoria’s heart was warming to him. “But how without people thinking we have information about him?”

“We’re not turning him in.” Chris shook his head.  “I’m not giving him back to the Hales without an explanation. Maybe we can talk to Alan Deaton first.”

“The emissary? Good idea.” Victoria nodded. “I know him.”

“Good.” Chris carried Peter upstairs to the bathroom. “It’s going to be okay, alright?” He reassured the boy. Peter didn’t loosen his hold so it took a bit of maneuvering to try and get the bath water running. “Look. I’m not going to leave you alone, okay? But you need to get cleaned up. You’re a mess.”

Peter reluctantly let go of him. Chris filled the tub up with bubbles and found some shampoo. He turned around so that Peter could get undressed. The boy did so awkwardly and got into the tub.  He glanced at Peter’s back grimly. It didn’t make any sense. The werewolf mark of revenge had been etched into his flesh and it wasn’t healing like most marks would. It made Chris’ heart hurt as the mark was over Peter’s left shoulder blade. He was just a child, he should not be marked like that.  He turned his head away because even though Peter wanted him in the room he wasn’t in the habit of watching ten year boys bathe.

Who could have done this? What depraved asshole had forced a boy to witness his mother’s death then marked him? How had Peter gotten away? Questions ran through his mind and his head was swimming in theories. The Hales were a powerful werewolf family. He didn’t know that much about the pack or their numbers but he did know Peter was the oldest boy but his sister was the heir. Was it revenge against the Hales for something that made Peter not want to be a Hale anymore? The Hales were proud of their children. Male and female. More werewolves in the pack meant they were stronger but until he understood what was going on there was no way he was giving Peter back. No one even knew what had happened to Peter’s mother only that she was dead and Peter had gone missing. The investigation was still going on. Deaton was working with the werewolves because it hadn’t been the Argents.

Statewide searches had been going on for Peter Hale as they were that important a family. And rich. They were loaded and secluded. There had always been a Hale in Beacon Hills and always would be and as long as they did not kill innocents, the Argents would leave them alone.

When Peter was done bathing, Chris wrapped him up in a large towel and helped him dry off. He loaned Peter one of his shirts and laughed softly as it went way past Peter’s knees. He had to admit, he hoped they had one of each. Unfortunately Victoria didn’t seem to want any more children.

Peter gave him a wan smile and took his hand.

“Feel better now?” Chris asked him gently.

“Just tired, sir.” Peter nodded.

Chris took him into the master bedroom and smiled when he noticed that Victoria had already set up the cot. It was not that comfortable but he would not be alone. “I could give you the guest room if you want to be on your own, Peter.”

“No sir, this is fine.”  Peter shook his head.

It was the mid-afternoon but Chris knew the child would sleep for a long time. He tucked him in and made sure he was settled.

Chris settled down in a chair in the room and tried to read a book while Peter slept.

_Can I be Peter Argent now?_

It was a terrible idea and Victoria wouldn’t allow it anyway but he couldn’t shake the thought once it lodged into his head. If Peter truly was in danger of a revenge against the Hales, the safest place for him was at the home of a werewolf hunter.  

Chris felt a strange urge to protect him, like it was somehow his duty.  Like out of everyone in the world it was up to Chris Argent to make sure this particular boy was safe. Peter was important.

_You can’t adopt him. He has a living family._

But he wanted to. It was the craziest idea he’d ever thought of. He was clearly good with small children and would be fine with Allison. They could move somewhere. He could take them to France. Peter’s bracelet would keep him hidden from other werewolves.

Chris frowned.

Better to find the one responsible for the trauma inflicted on the boy and get him back with his family. As much as Chris was not inclined to trust the Hales, he was theirs. The more he thought about it, the more his brain hurt and he nodded off.

He woke up, startled to find Peter climbing into his lap and curling up. The young wolf didn’t seem awake and he’d dragged the blanket with him. Chris sighed and pulled the blanket around them both. He just let Peter sleep against him and stroked his hair. Poor kid.

Chris would find out what did this and destroy them.

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Peter truly slept for the first time since his mamma died. When he woke up he was still curled up in the arms of the hunter, Chris Argent. He blushed at the memory of how he’d been caught. He’d fallen asleep under Allison’s window. He hadn’t meant to but he’d been so tired and so scared. He wasn’t used to this feeling. He didn’t like it. He was ten, not a baby. There should be no reason why it felt so good to be wrapped up in the arms of a human.  He breathed in Chris’ scent. It was comfortable and it helped him focus but someone killed his mamma and wanted to kill him too. He didn’t remember his father, his father died when he was born. Mamma was Alpha Talia’s mother too but Alpha Talia did not know what was going on. His sister didn’t care about anything other than keeping the peace.

He knew they were after him. He heard Talia calling for him and they could not know Mamma gave him something he could used to resist them. He looked down at his wrist and unbidden an image of his Mamma’s wrists bound and struggling rose to his brain. He whimpered and tightened his grip on Argent.  
  
Chris jolted awake to the unnatural feeling of claws digging into his skin. “Peter!” He exhaled sharply.  
  
Peter noticed the blood and immediately dislodged his nails. He scrambled off of Chris and skittered to the other side of the bedroom, eyes wide with worry.

"It’s nothing,” Chris assured him. “I’ve had worse. Are you alright?”  
  
Peter grimaced. “Fine,” he nodded slowly and stood up. “Is it dinner time?” He looked out the window and saw the rain coming down hard. He was lucky that he’d been found, it would have been uncomfortable in the forest. It was lucky the Argents brought him inside, he would have been drenched. “My sister’s looking for me.” He told Chris with a slightly lifted chin. “Are you going to give me to her?”

“Do you want me to?” Chris asked him. His back ached a bit from sleeping in the chair for...he looked at the time. Six hours?!?  
  
“No.” Peter shook his head.  
  
“Are you going to tell me why not? She’s your sister. Surely she’s not going to hurt you.” Chris gestured at nothing in particular.

“It’s not that.” Peter swallowed as he tried valiantly to keep the fear out of his eyes. He lowered his voice softly. “Someone in the pack is a traitor.”

“And you fear them?”  
  
Peter nodded. “I smelled them when Mamma-” He swallowed again nervously.

“It’s alright Peter, you can trust me. I’m not going to hurt you.”  
  
“You’re a hunter, but you’re not like the others.” Peter sniffed the air.  
  
“Tell me what happened.”

“No.” Peter shook his head warily.

“If someone in the pack is a traitor you need to let your Alpha know.” Chris coaxed him gently. “We are different, we follow a code. Listen, Peter. You can’t stay here. We’re a hunter family and you’re a Werewolf. I have to give you back to the Pack but not before I know what’s going on.”

“Mamma said not to tell anyone.” Peter shook his head violently. He reached for his bracelet and held onto it as if it was some way of holding on to his mother. “She told me. It was the last-,” he swallowed and tears welled in his eyes. “She told me to run, she said that was the only wa-way...I c-c…” He couldn’t stop the choking sobs. “My Mamma’s dead.”

Chris’ heart went out to the kid because he knew what that was like. He’d lost his mother in much the same manner. “Awe, kid.” He reached for some kleenex and stood up to help Peter blow his nose and dry his eyes.  
  
“Look, I promise. I won’t let anything happen to you, okay?” Chris ruffled his hair gently.

Victoria knocked lightly on the door. “Everything okay in here? Peter, are you hungry?”

“Yes, ma’am.”  
  
Victoria looked at the blood on Chris’ arm and her lips pressed together.  
  
“It’s nothing,” Chris assured her. “He was startled.”  
  
“I’m sorry, Ma’am. It won’t happen again.” Peter stared at the floor and shuffled his weight from one leg to the other.  
  
“Hm,” Victoria nodded. “Christopher, may I speak with you for a minute?”  
  
“He’ll hear everything anyway.” Chris noted

“No he won’t,” Victoria. “Will you Peter? You’re not going to listen, are you?” The reproachful look she gave him was enough to make Peter shrink back.  
  
“I won’t, ma’am.” Peter shook his head quickly.

Victoria took Chris aside, Allison’s bedroom door was ajar so that she could also watch her own child. “Chris, I spoke with Deaton. He says that it’s chaos and accusations are flying around the pack. He’s having a rough time keeping them under control and Peter being missing isn’t helping anyone. Talia is beside herself with worry for her little brother. It’s very likely that if he isn’t found she’s going to have a war on her hands. Talia became Alpha because their father died a few years after Peter was born. Peter’s father was a strong Alpha and I think what’s going on is that half the pack wants Peter to be the Alpha. They are split down the middle. The man who wants to him to be groomed to be the Alpha is Peter’s Mother’s boyfriend, Darron. He thinks Talia’s too weak.”

“So it’s a power play?” Chris stroked his chin. “Did someone find out what they were up to? Is that why Peter’s mom was killed?”

“It looks like it, Deaton has told us to keep Peter with us while he sorts this mess out. For now he’s assured Talia that Peter is safe but he doesn’t know how long that will hold her off for. The pack is accusing her of getting rid of him.”

“So this Darron, is he a wolf? Did Deaton say?” Chris asked.  
  
“I don’t know, Peter would know but I don’t think it’s a good idea to ask him about his Pack.” Victoria shrugged. “We want him to trust us, not to think we are trying to get information out of him about his family. Deaton told me that if his mother told him to run there was a damn good reason.”

“You have a point,” nodded Chris. “So we’re babysitting him?”  
  
“Pretty much,” Victoria chuckled. “Safest place for him is with a hunter family at the moment. You should take care of your arm, I’ll take Peter downstairs.”

Chris nodded, “Thank you, Vic.” He kissed his wife gently and headed to the bathroom.

Victoria smiled at Peter. “Come on downstairs, Peter. I know Chris’ shirt is a bit big for you but I have some boxes left over from where I work sometimes in San Fransisco. I almost forgot. I should have something there in your size. The clothes are a bit fancy for a kid though, think you can manage?”  
  
“I’ll be careful, ma’am.” Peter nodded solemnly.  
  
Victoria gathered a sleepy Allison and took Peter downstairs to where she had pulled out a couple of boxes.  
  
“Mine!” Allison wiggled in Victoria’s arms and hugged her mom. She gave Peter a curious, yet challenging look.  
  
Peter smiled at her, “sorry.”

“‘S’kay.” Allison giggled, apparently happy at winning the competition for her mom as she gazed at Peter. “Pretty.”  
  
Peter had the grace to blush.  
  
Victoria wasn’t kidding when she said the clothes were fancy. Peter stared at them. He had some clothes like this, of course, his family was very wealthy. “I’ll do my best to take care of them, ma’am.” he promised Victoria as he selected a couple of items.  
  
“Go change and wash your face. We’ll have supper soon, dear.”  
  
Peter washed up and changed. It felt good to have clothes on that fit relatively well. He looked at himself in the mirror and combed his hair. He felt almost normal. The long sleeved shirt was dressy, but he could deal with that. The jeans were designer and tight-fitting but he was fine with that. He’d chosen a forest green shirt to go with the jeans. He liked green.

When he came out Victoria gave him an approving look. “That’s much better, kiddo.”  
  
Peter rewarded her with a beaming smile. He helped her set the table and sat down to play a game with Allison. Chris came down a few minutes later and smiled when he saw the kid dressed. His shoulder was patched in a bandage and Peter gave him an apologetic look.

Chris just ruffled his hair and sat down at the table. He looked over at Victoria who smiled and scooped up Allison from the floor to put her into her chair. Peter picked himself up and shuffled over to take a seat.

The ten year old looked between the three of them and exhaled. Meals at home would never be the same again without Mamma. He didn’t want to go back there. The Argents were alive and loved each other. There wasn’t any constant arguing. “I’m not going back,” said Peter firmly.

Chris spooned some mashed potatoes on his plate and passed the dish to the ten year old. “You know what we are, Peter. You can’t live here permanently.”

Peter stared down at his plate with a mutinous expression. He took the dish, served himself and passed it to Victoria. “They don’t want me there.”  
  
Allison began to cry, “no milk, jus!” she pushed away the cup. It almost tumbled to the floor but  
Peter caught it.

Peter immediately stood up to get her some juice since Victoria had just sat down. “I’ll get it.”  
  
Allison stared at him in wide-eyed wonder and made grabby hands.

“Peter, we don’t generally let Allison have everything she asks for.” Victoria began.

Peter stopped and gave Victoria a fearful look and mumbled, “Sorry ma’am.”

“It’s alright just this once, dear.” Victoria smiled and Peter relaxed.  
  
Chris and Victoria watched as Peter set the juice cup down next to Allison.  She giggled at him and offered him the cup magnanimously. He took a sip and gave it back to her. A few moments later Peter was happily distracted and feeding their two year old.

Chris just gave a little shrug and they carried on with dinner.

Later that evening Peter was finally situated in the guest room without needing to cling to Chris to get back to sleep. Chris was pouring over the information they had so far gathered since Peter showed up in their garden that morning.  “You go to bed.” Chris told her softly. “I need to start making sense of this. Maybe Peter will talk to us tomorrow. He seemed better at dinner.”  
  
“Trauma doesn’t just go away.” Victoria noted. “It took you a long time to recover from what your father did.”  She reached up and brushed away a wrinkle line on Chris’ forehead. “You grew up too fast, Christopher. He’s traumatized, he’ll talk eventually.”  
  
“He’s good with Allison.” Chris commented.  
  
Victoria nodded. “Deaton told me not to worry about that. Peter’s very good with children.” She laid a hand over Chris’. “What are you thinking?”  
  
“I’m thinking that after what you told me I want to have a _chat_ with Peter’s Mother’s boyfriend.” Chris looked very serious.  
  
“You think he’s mixed up in her death?”  
  
“I don’t know. It sounds like he’s using Peter to get power.”

“Our job is to keep him safe, Chris.” Victoria shook her head. “Just until Deaton manages to straighten things out. It’s Werewolf politics and we shouldn’t be involved in it.”

“He’s only ten.” Chris gave a frustrated noise. “They’re using him just like-”  
  
“Just like how Gerard used you?”  
  
Chris sighed, “Gerard got what he wanted.”  
  
“Not for another sixteen years, Chris. That was the deal we made.”

“I know,” responded Chris with a shudder. He absolutely hated his father but they had no choice in the matter. There was a code and one day Allison would be a part of it, just not today.

Upstairs Peter was listening as he lay awake to stare at the ceiling. They didn’t know his stepfather or what he was capable of. Even Peter hadn’t known. Darron wanted an Alpha he could control. He balled his fists and curled up in the bed. He liked it here, it smelled nice.  The Argents were good people, even if they were hunters.  

He closed his eyes and hoped hard that he wouldn’t have to leave.

**TBC**

 

  


  


  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


  


 

  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


  
  


 

  
  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter ages a bit, is adopted by the Argent family and makes a friend.

The school year was starting and there was no option to homeschool Peter. The summer had passed quicker than he’d expected and Peter was patient and determined not to go back to the pack. They spent a great deal of time negotiating with Talia Hale after Peter was psychologically evaluated. He’d been through too much trauma, she said. 

“Would you keep him for a while? He seems to like Allison and he’s healthier than he’s been even before our mother’s murder. I will stop by and check on his progress and make sure he gets training. It would help preserve the peace in Beacon Hills if you would agree to this.” 

Chris and Victoria had talked long and hard about it and finally came to a decision. If Peter was going to live with them, they would adopt him but a trial period was necessary first. They would need to see if he could function and grow in a non-pack environment. Talia had agreed to the condition and the discussion they had with Peter about it was extremely unsettling. Peter had been both relieved and something had died in his eyes. They’d kept him for three months and he’d thrived. 

Peter had thrown all his energy into helping Victoria and looking after Allison. Allison he treated as if she was his own sister and his daughter grew quite fond of the boy. For a while, it worked out just fine. Talia would visit regularly and approve of the progress.  Then one day, without a word, the pack left Beacon Hills. Peter had been abandoned. Chris and Victoria officially began to start the process to adopt him. 

It would be his responsibility to keep the young werewolf on the right path. His father still didn’t know about the situation and neither did his sister. They had been out of contact for a long time so that was still a situation that would need to be dealt with.  They took help from Alan Deaton who was more of an emissary than a vet. Peter was brought to him for evaluation weekly and then bi-weekly. 

It was September and Peter had his own room now. 

Still, Chris felt uncomfortable having a werewolf living with them. It was like having a loaded gun in the household and it often took many words from Victoria to soothe his worries.

“Peter’s a sweet boy, Christopher. He’d never hurt Allison or either one of us. You see how he dotes on her. He considers us his pack now.” Victoria had spoken gently. 

“For now.” Chris exhales. “But what about when gets older and wants revenge for what his pack did to him?” 

“You worry too much,” Victoria had smoothed out the worry lines on her husband’s forehead. 

And that was why he was driving his truck to the Beacon Hills Elementary School to drop Peter off. “Are you alright, Peter?” Chris parked the car. Peter had been quiet for most of the morning and not too excited about starting school.

“I haven’t been to a real school before.” Peter explained in a small voice.  Or had any friends outside the pack. He gave Chris a worried frown. “What if no one likes me?”  
  
Chris gave a short laugh, “You’re a handsome, articulate kid Peter. You’ll have no problem.” 

He was a little scrawny at the moment but Chris had him on a workout routine. He’d get there soon enough. 

“What if Ally needs me and I’m not home to help her?” Peter fretted. 

“Victoria will call if there is any trouble.” Chris picked up Peter’s lunchbox from the back seat and bookbag. “Okay, you’ve got this. Hear me?”

Peter hesitated and took them. He cast a wary glance at the school entrance and then back to Chris. With a swift motion he reached over and hugged his Chris tightly. Then he was out of the truck in a shot. 

Chris was left momentarily flustered, waved and waited until he was met by a teacher. With a reluctant sigh, he drove away.  There was still the issue of his father and sister to deal with. He had no idea what they would do when they found out. He would protect Peter from them, however. Both he and Victoria had promised Deaton. He was their responsibility now. Whatever happened.

*

Bobby Finstock had two bits of toilet paper stuck in his nostrils while they sat in the principal’s office and Peter fidgeted.    
  
“You didn’t have to stick up for me.” Bobby grumbled, he was a lot smaller than Peter but still the same age. He had hair that stuck up everywhere in every which way and a pair of wide rimmed glasses. He’d been bullied during the lunch room break and Peter had intervened. Since then he hadn’t really met anyone yet. The girls made eyes at him and the boys were suspicious. He wasn’t disruptive in class and seemed to know the answers to things they didn’t and were jealous.

Peter was more worried about Chris not letting him come back. He’d actually liked some of the classes. His aptitude tests were off the charts, according to his fifth grade teacher. He would be in AP classes soon enough. A Mrs Loraine Martin. If they sent a note back with him to his parents for a signature, Chris would not be happy with him.

“You couldn’t defend yourself. Argents defend.”

"I thought you were introduced as Peter Hale?” Bobby gave him a strange look. 

“My adopted family is Argent. I’m a Hale.” Peter shrugged. The fact still bugged him but he didn’t have a choice. Chris had talked long with him about it and said that due to the moral situation he couldn’t in good conscious take Peter’s last name away. A wolf with the surname of Argent would create too many shockwaves. 

“So, Peter Hale-Argent,” Bobby grunted. “I’m Bobby Finstock. My father’s the Principal so I get bothered a lot.  Welcome to Beacon Elementary.”  They shook hands and were fast friends.

 

Peter Hale-Argent? He kind of liked the sound of that. 

As it turned out, befriending the son of the Principal had it’s perks. He got off with just a slight warning and no one bothered Bobby after that. Best of all, no one sent a letter home with him and he’d impressed his teacher. 

It was Victoria who picked him up this time. Chris had apparently been called away on a hunt, which always made her worry a bit. “He’ll be back in a few days.” She assured Peter when the boy got on the bus. “Looks like you made a friend.” She waved to the black haired boy who was grinning at Peter. 

“Yeah, that’s Bobby Finstock.”

“The Principal’s son?” Victoria smiled, pleased. “Good for you. Why don’t we go grab some pizza and ice cream to celebrate your first day? Ally missed you.”

“Petah!” Ally cried from the backseat. He reached over and hugged her leg. 

“I’d like that.” Peter cracked a grin. They shared a conspiratorial wink and knew very well Chris didn’t approve of junk food for dinner.

*

Peter lay awake in his bed a few nights later to the sound of Chris coming home. He smelled blood so he immediately bounded down the stairs and then stopped in his tracks. There was someone with Chris. She was a formidable woman with long dark hair, dark skin and armed to the teeth. 

The other hunter’s eyes tracked him immediately and frowned. 

Victoria was out of her room already and putting on a robe. “Chris!” She rushed past Peter who clung to the banister.  “What happened?”

“Claws.” The woman responded giving Victoria a look of disdain. “There was only one option to get to the beast and that meant getting in range. So the fool man did and got a chest full of claws for his trouble.” They helped him to the couch. “It’s dead though.”

Victoria seemed to know the woman so Peter wasn’t too worried but he knew what to do. He went right to where they kept the medical supplies and brought them out wordlessly. Chris looked like he was in a lot of pain and Peter bit his lip with worry. “Thank you, get me some alcohol from the study.” 

Peter headed off. 

“Who’s that charming little man? I didn’t know you had a son.” The huntress gave Victoria a sultry wink. 

“We can handle it from here.” Victoria responded quickly as she tore open Chris’ shirt to deal with the makeshift bandages.  “His name is Peter. He’s my son. Peter this is an associate of your father’s, Lana Saunder.”

Peter noticed the subtle change in Victoria’s tone. He heard it easily. She didn’t trust Lana. She had good reason. Peter turned his eyes towards the huntress and gave a nod of his head as he handed the liquor to Victoria. 

He could smell something on Lana, something he used to smell on his sister when she looked at her husband. He understood what it was and that it was directed at Chris who swayed somewhat groggily. 

“I don’t see the resemblance.” Lana’s lips twitched with amusement. She seemed to enjoy Victoria’s discomfort. Peter could hear the subtle changes in her heart beat and the pheromones she was giving off every time she looked at Chris. 

“Hi,” Peter responded and shrugged. Chris opened his eyes and gave a groan when Victoria finished peeling off the bandages. 

“Hey,” Chris mumbled weakly. “Got in the way of something, but you should see the other guy.” The only person his eyes went to when he woke was Victoria. 

Peter gave an inward sigh of relief. Clearly the infatuation was one sided. 

Upstairs, Ally cried. 

“Peter, would  you be a dear and see to Allison?” Victoria asked him as she threaded a needle. Lana took the alcohol and had a gulp from it before offering it to Chris.

“Yes.” He was just about to call her Victoria when she gave him a warning look. “Mother.” Not quite understanding but unwilling to question he turned abruptly and headed upstairs. 

Chris gave Peter a weak smile as he tried to remain conscious. “Don’t worry about me, kid.” 

Peter gave him a little grin and bounded up the stairs. 

*

It wasn’t the first time he saw hunters making eyes at Chris and he knew it often put Victoria in a bad mood. As for Chris, the man was oblivious. Peter always checked to see if he smelled anyone other than Victoria on Chris but nope. If there was one thing Chris could be counted on was his single-minded devotion to his wife. It was something that Peter as a wolf could relate to. Time passed and Peter got used to his new life. Chris trained him the only way he knew how, as a hunter and he moved on from grade school to junior high. He thrived under their care. He’d never been so happy.

As for Allison, he was extremely protective of her and she followed him around like a lost puppy. Bobby Finstock became his best friend and he soon excelled in academics and sports alike. Chris didn’t want him on any football teams due to the chance that he might hurt someone but he had height and long arms on his side even in middle school, so basketball became his sport. 

He’d almost forgotten about that night when his mom died. That fear. The blood and the look in her eyes when she told him to run. The Hale pack didn’t return, nor did they send word to Deaton, or so he said. The Hale house was shuttered and locked up. Sometimes he went out there against Chris’ orders. 

He could shift into a full wolf and knew very well that was a special thing. So far, no one had found out that he wasn’t human. They had been very careful.  The story put around was that the Hale family had all vanished and Peter was the last one left. Sometimes it hurt, the fact that they had abandoned him. He didn’t know why and it was depressing. He wondered if they had run from something else. He didn’t know. Sometimes he would search for answers at the house but could never find them. 

*   
He was thirteen when Bobby Finstock found out about werewolves for the first time. He had convinced Bobby that it was okay to go wandering in the preserve, even though Chris had expressly forbidden it and grounded him several times over it. It was a great place to hang out and pretend they were degenerates instead of 4.0 average students. “The Jock Brains,” Bobby called them. 

“I’m clearly better looking that you are since I’ve had two girlfriends and you’ve had how many, Peter? How many?” Bobby jostled Peter’s shoulder good naturedly as they walked. 

Zero. Peter grimaced. Zero was the correct answer. There was a good reason for that. Chris scared anyone away, or distracted them. That was the problem about having a hot parent, the girls all stared at him not you. “It’s not my fault!” Peter groused.

It was six thirty or so and given it was the fall dusk would be setting soon. He knew he had to be home by 7:30 at the latest, but he still had time. He sniffed the air suddenly, smelling blood. 

“Dude, you know that’s creepy!” Bobby complained. He always hated it when Peter sniffed like that. 

Blood and an erratic heartbeat. He knew he should take Bobby the hell out of here and head home to let Chris know but the heartbeat was so frantic he was sure that if he did they would be dead by the time his dad got back here. 

So he took a hidden knife out which earned him another exclamation from Bobby. It was more hushed though since Bobby was used to his “intuition” by now.  “Something’s out there.” Peter had always claimed to have good hearing. 

“I can’t hear anything. Ouch!” Bobby just tripped over a weapon lying in the ground and fell onto his ass. He cringed when he saw the gun had a set of fingers still attached to it and scrambled away. “Gross-. Is that some kind of prank? It can’t be real.”  
  
“Don’t touch it!” Peter warned.  He heard the frantic heartbeat coming closer, low rumbling terrified growls. An omega? Shit. “Bobby, run!”  He stood firm, whipping into place with the knife out and ready to transform if he needed to. He couldn’t though, as long as Bobby was there.

Bobby scrambled to his feet, “I’m not leaving you, Petey!” 

It was too late, the rabid monster came bounding out of the bushes, blood on it’s lips and rage in his eyes. It was already hurt, already bleeding from wounds inflicted on it by hunters. The beast was savage with its’ long teeth and he heard Bobby scream in terror. He kept his stance and just as it lunged at him, Peter swiped the special blade Chris had given him across the thing’s chest. It yelped in pain and collapsed on the ground. 

Bobby stared as the creature started to change shape and turn human. He stared at Peter who didn’t seem to be at all surprised. Peter sprang onto the woman in a moment and held the dagger to her neck. 

“You don’t smell like a hunter.” She spat out. Blood was pooling in her lips. She was ravaged by other wounds. “You smell like-” Black liquid rose up from her mouth and she coughed and sputtered, then went still. 

“Petey...Peter. Is she?” Bobby whimpered.

He listened and could hear her heartbeat, faint but there. “Not dead.” He stood there silently for a while. 

“We need to call for an ambulance or something!” Bobby panicked. “What was that thing. What is she?” 

"She’s a werewolf scared out of her mind.” Peter said finally. “Listen, we need to get her to Alan Deaton, then call my Dad He’ll know what to do.”

“Are you kidding? She’s too heavy! We can’t carry ….”

Peter lifted her up without effort. 

Bobby just stared and sucked in his breath. “What are you?”

“We’ll talk about this later.”   Peter promised. Chris was going to kill him or ground him until he was thirty.  


**TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens.  
> Please let me know what you think.:)

“So,” Bobby looked over at Peter as they sat in the waiting room of the clinic waiting For Chris Argent. Chris was in the room arguing with Alan Deaton. “You’re a werewolf.” Bobby Finstock had a way about him. Peter liked him a lot, especially how he just got to the point without dancing around it. 

“Yeah,” Peter stared back at him, defiant. 

“And not in a cult?” Bobby tilted his head slightly.

“No, why would you think that!?!” Peter gave Bobby an appalled look.

“I saw you come home one night after the full moon and your shirt was covered in blood.” Bobby nodded. “I thought it was some kind of cult. I’ve been keeping notes. According to my research you’ve been showing signs of cult behavior. Especially during the full moon. You have moves on the basketball court most people could only dream of and you never get sick.”

Peter grimaced. “I should have known. Dad wouldn’t let me tell you.”  He’d gotten used to calling Chris Dad after a while and when his adopted father didn’t object he just kept doing it. “It’s dangerous, Bobby. My life.”

“Living in Beacon Hills isn’t exactly a picnic.” Bobby laughed harshly.  “Remember my cousin and his girlfriend who got killed last year? Did you know what happened to them?” 

“No, but I suspected. Dad took care of it. He wouldn’t let me come on that one.”  Peter shoved his hands in his pockets and slouched. “You’re not going to be an asshole about this are you?” 

Bobby shoved Peter’s arm. “I always got your back, idiot. So werewolves are real and your Dad hunts them? How did you end up living with him?” Bobby scratched his head. “I ran across some news articles about when you went missing I’d been meaning to ask you about.”

Peter’s eyes abruptly darkened. “I don’t want to talk about that.”  He shook his head and stood up abruptly. “I’ll…I don’t.” He looked almost panicked. “I can’t...” There was something weird about his hitched breathing.

“Hey, Peter? Are you okay?” Bobby rose to try and offer him support.

“Get away.” Peter insisted with a low growl. He could smell blood. Blood on him. Blood on his hands. He looked down at his shirt that was covered in the blood of the girl he’d carried in. His mother’s blood. He remembered it. He closed his eyes and fought the pain. He could hear Bobby calling to him and his wolf tried to focus, tried to center on his friend’s voice. Unfortunately Bobby got too close too quickly and Peter tackled him to the ground. He partially shifted for the first time in months. Chris always had a hard time making him do it. He didn’t want to be a wolf but Chris was adamant that he embrace it, learn from it. If he didn’t things could go very wrong for him. 

Bobby flung his arms up in front of his eyes and Peter braced his arms on either side of the boy.The rest of the weight of his larger body pinned him down. Bobby was at too frightened to move. Peter’s eyes glowed gold as he snarled angrily.

“PETER!” Chris hollered from the doorway to the Vet’s surgery. He didn’t any weapons drawn but Peter recognized his voice as alpha anyway. And yet it wasn’t Chris who drew Peter back from it. It was Bobby.

The terrified young man gazed up at Peter. “It’s okay, Pete. It’s me, man. You’re okay.”  He wiggled his arm free and squeezed Peter’s. “Peter? Petey. Look at me.”

Chris kept silent as he watched the boys. 

“I shouldn’t have brought that up. I’m sorry. It was a stupid thing to do.” Bobby rattled on. “I don’t care that you’re a werewolf. It’s actually kind of cool. My sidekick’s a werewolf.” Bobby’s laugh was a little obnoxious but endearing nonetheless. 

It wasn’t enough to bring back Peter. He was starting to change. Bobby threw Chris a desperate look. The older man remained where he was, a hard look in his eyes. “No sudden movements.” Chris warned Bobby. 

“What’s wrong with him?” Bobby glanced back and forth worriedly. 

“Post traumatic stress.” Chris sighed. He had known this day would come. With a sinking heart he stared at the boy he’d come to love as a son. 

“Peter.” Bobby tried again and then did the only thing he could think of. He’d always been a bit on the reckless side and he had zero interest in boys.  But Peter was Peter. “Screw it.” Thirteen year old Bobby Finstock seized Peter’s jaw and kissed him. Sharp teeth and all. 

Chris’ mouth opened and closed tightly.

The action did the trick. Score one for Bobby Finstock. Peter’s eyes changed from feral gold back to blue nearly instantaneously. His fangs retracted and his face eased as he just let Bobby kiss him.  He was too stunned for anything else. 

It wasn’t a long and drawn out messy kiss, they were just kids. It was a sweet, gentle exchange. Once he parted for breath, Peter rested his forehead against Bobby’s and panted.  Bobby gently gave Peter a bit of a push. “Come on, let me up. Dude, your  _ Dad’s _ watching.”

“What did you do _ that _ for!”  Peter sputtered. He scrambled to his feet, confused and angry. 

“Well, I had to do something.” Bobby pointed out. “You were going to rip my throat out!” 

“I would not have! I couldn’t do that!” Peter shook his head wildly. 

“Could have fooled me.” Bobby shuddered. 

“He wouldn’t have.” Chris stated firmly. “I’d been suspecting this for a while. Peter, are you alright?” He moved over towards his son and put his hand on his shoulder. “It was the blood wasn’t it? Brought back bad memories?” 

“Suspecting what?!” Bobby screeched in panic.  “We’re not, He’s not! I’m not….” He shook his head wildly. 

“Relax. You’re just his Anchor.” Chris said with a low laugh. 

“Oh, good. That’s okay then.” Bobby breathed a sigh of relief. 

“Peter?” Chris lifted his hand and ruffled Peter’s hair.    
  
Peter nodded at last. “I smelled her,” His lips trembled. “I haven’t smelled her in such a long time. I-” He missed his mother. He missed her terribly at that moment. 

Chris enveloped Peter in a quick, tight hug. To Bobby he gave a stern look.  “Robert, I’m sure you can understand the need for secrecy.” His tone took on a slightly threatening one. “Since I know Peter’s shown you the weapons storage locker you know what I’m really good at. I expect your silence.”

“As the grave, sir! Silent as the grave...er!” Bobby looked flustered, “I mean. Bad choice of words! Haha…” He glanced nervously at Peter. “Silence. Yep. You got it, sir!” He gave Chris a thumbs up. 

Chris eyed Bobby and the kid shrank bank. 

“Peter, I want you to take Bobby home then head home yourself. I’ve called Victoria and she’s expecting you. This is very serious. I don’t want you boys in danger.” 

“You get that he’s a-” Bobby piped up and snapped his jaw shut at Chris’ glare. He made a zip lip gesture and bounced anxiously on his feet. 

The fact was, this was very similar to Peter’s mother’s death. The killer just hadn’t had a chance to finish. Chris hoped the werewolf would wake up so he could question her and he didn’t want Peter around for that.  “Go home, Peter.” Chris repeated. “I mean it.”

Peter nodded resignedly.  Bobby tugged his arm and they left the clinic. 

“Why did you kiss me?”

“What’s an Anchor?” 

Bobby laughed as they both spoke at the same time. “It seemed like a good idea at the time?”

“An Anchor is how a werewolf gets through the full moon. You’ve been mine for a long time.” Peter gave an embarrassed smile. “It’s not exactly something I could bring up in regular conversation.”   
  
“That sounds like responsibility.” Bobby made a face. 

“It’s just something for me to focus on so I don’t let the beast loose. Dad says Anchors are important if I want to stop myself from accidentally killing someone.” Peter kicked at a rock as they walked down the sidewalk. 

Bobby walked in front of him, backwards, as he often did. “Are we really going home?” 

“Have you ever seen my Dad when he’s pissed? He’s going to ground me, he only hasn’t yet because you were there.”

Bobby shook his head. 

“We’re going home.”  Peter nodded firmly. 

“Hey, Peter?” Bobby asked after a while as they walked silently. 

“Yeah?”

“You’re not going to tell anyone about that kiss, right?” Bobby nudged him. 

“Of course not.” Peter smirked. “Who would I tell?” 

“Good.” Bobby relaxed a bit. “Because, it wasn’t that it was bad, or that it happened at all. I mean, I liked kissing you.”

“You did?” Peter gave him an incredulous look. 

“I might kiss you again.” Bobby gave him a reckless grin. “Your face was priceless.” 

Peter shoved his hands in his pockets and just glared at Bobby. 

“Ooh, big scary werewolf, brought down with a kiss.” Bobby motioned dramatically with his hands. 

“Shut up.” Peter snorted. 

“Beauty and the Beast.” Bobby kept talking. “I’m totally the beauty.” 

Peter just let him talk, he loved hearing Bobby chatter on about everything and anything. The world kind of slid off of him for the most part. Bobby just let things go. He really was the perfect Anchor. His voice could ramble on about anything in the world and it would soothe Peter. It made him stop thinking about blood, pain and loss. He watched Bobby silently, nodding every now and again. He’d kill to protect Bobby just as he’d kill to protect any of his family. He knew Bobby wasn’t putting down his looks. Peter was very well aware of how good looking he was. He just liked to tease him about it. Girls at school liked him just as much as they liked Bobby. Peter was just particular. 

He wasn’t going to tell Bobby that was his first kiss. It was the first time he’d let anyone get close enough to him. Not since his mother’s death.  He dropped Bobby off and gave him a slightly awkward hug then headed to his house a few blocks away. He knew Victoria would be waiting for him. He felt uneasy though as the hackles rose on the back of his neck.  He couldn’t put his finger on it but something wasn’t right. The streets were quiet but for the odd barking of a dog here and there. 

He pulled his jacket on tightly to cover up and walked faster. There was an old gentleman standing on the corner and watching him. He looked rather fierce and Peter picked up the scent of gun oil and recognized him from the photo albums at the house. If he didn’t know any better, that was Chris’ father. Gerard Argent. And that meant bad news. Very bad news. He quickened his pace. Argent started to follow.

He walked past a small park and noticed a blonde girl playing on the merrygoround. It was a bit too late for that. He kept walking. The blonde girl gave him a huge, disconcerting smile. He immediately didn’t like her. 

“Nice night.” Gerard Argent commented just as soon as they crossed paths. The house was only a few yards away. He could make it. “We seem to be going in the same direction.”

He knew about Gerard Argent. The man was a fanatic. He and Chris had a falling out years ago and he wasn’t welcome. That meant the blonde must be Chris’ young sister Kate. “I’m not supposed to talk to strangers.” Peter muttered darkly. It wasn’t just that he knew Gerard though, he felt something. Smelled something familiar. His whole body was on alert instantly. The man was making his skin crawl and his wolf rage. 

He knew this man.

The blonde girl materialized at his other side. “But we’re not strangers.” She grinned at him in a deceptively happy manner. “We’re going to be very good friends!” She insisted and made a grab for his hand. He snatched it away only to have his arm caught by Gerard. 

“Now that was rude.” Gerard tutted. “We’re just being friendly, boy. And yes we’re certainly not strangers. Ah, Victoria.” Gerard looked to the front steps of the Argent House. Victoria was standing in the doorway, shotgun in hand. 

The older man’s eyes gleamed in the streetlamp light and Peter wanted to cringe because the bastard was one of the most ruthless hunters in the world. 

“Chris is not here. You can turn around and go back to the rocks you slithered out of.  Let him go.” Victoria growled as she cocked her gun. 

“I come in peace.” Gerard let Peter go. He the werewolf as he hurried up the stairs to Victoria.   
  
“Get behind me,” Victoria told Peter. Peter knew better than to argue. 

“I’d heard you adopted a stray.” Gerard said smoothly. “May we come in.”

“No.”

“I have information regarding the Hale Pack and an omega we’ve been tracking. That’s why I am here.” Gerard lifted his chin. “I can be friendly or not. Your choice.”

Peter tried hard not to flinch but he knew even if Gerard wasn’t watching him, Kate was. That girl’s eyes were unnerving. 

“Come back when Chris is home.” Victoria said evenly.

“As you wish, A pleasure to have met you.” Gerard’s eyes bored into Peter’s. “Peter Hale.”

The man jerked his head at Kate and they turned to leave. He strolled away as if nothing important had occurred. 

Peter’s heart was racing. Now he knew why he was so afraid. He knew that voice. He knew that voice. 

_ He knew that voice. _

**TBC**


	6. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Chris and Victoria learn why Peter fears Gerard

“Come inside.” Victoria held her hand out to Peter who took it eagerly.  
  
It had been three years but he still remembered and he could feel the wolf trying to claw it’s way out. It wanted to run. It was desperate to run. But if he ran? He looked up at Victoria with wide, frightened eyes.

“Peter, what is it?” Victoria closed the door and locked it. “Chris won’t let his father hurt you.” 

Peter exhaled slowly and looked down at the floor. “He knows who I am.”

Victoria ushered him into the kitchen and sat him down while she called Chris at Deaton’s and told him about Gerard’s untimely appearance. 

Peter looked over at Allison who was playing with her toys on the living room floor by herself. She was humming and babbling a story and he wished with all his heart that he could protect her from all the evil in the world. He didn’t want her to become a hunter. He knew that Chris and Victoria didn’t want that for her either. If Gerard Argent somehow got hold of her? That would be the end of it.  He wouldn’t let Gerard Argent get to her.

Peter waited patiently for Victoria to get off the phone. He knew they were still around. He could smell them outside, lurking.

“He’s coming back right away. He said not to go outside without him here and that he’ll deal with his father and sister.” Victoria grimaced. She looked carefully at Peter. “Are you alright? You looked like you’d seen a ghost when you came home.” She touched his hair gently. 

“They’re still here.” Peter told her with a sigh. “He knows me. And I-” He shuddered. “I remember his scent.”

“What do you mean? Peter? Honey? Was he there?” Victoria gripped his shoulder briefly as he tensed and nodded. “Was it him?” Peter shook his head. “But he was there.” Peter nodded. “Did he hurt you?” Peter nodded mutely. Victoria cursed under her breath.  She knew Gerard Argent was a monster but hurting a child? That was completely against the code. “You’re safe in here.” She told him as she took apart a hidden gun locker behind one portrait. 

Allison continued to play in the living room as if nothing was going on while Peter kept an eye on the windows and stayed clear of them. He peaked out a curtain and saw Kate wandering around the backyard. She somehow sensed him looking at her and he tensed when she smiled and wiggled her fingers. He pressed his back against the wall. 

A squeal of tires had him breathe a sigh of relief. Chris was back and he wasn’t alone. He’d brought two of his reliable friends with him. Ones who knew about Peter. He’d seen them around before. They were good men. Honest hunters.  
  
“What do you want, Gerard?” He heard Chris as bluntly.

“Kate wants to meet her niece.” Gerard said smoothly. “And I hear I have a new grandson.”  The sardonic tone of his voice made Peter’s skin crawl. He watched Victoria expertly load an automatic rifle and couldn’t help but be impressed.

He could sense Chris’ turmoil. He’d heard the story of when Kate had her first kill at too young an age. The story had upset Chris greatly and he couldn’t take Kate away from Gerard at the time but they could stop him from getting his hands on Allison. He’d learned pretty quickly what kind of a person his sister was.  She took after her father whereas Chris was more like their mother. 

“I come in peace, Christopher. You can tell your wife she can put the weapons away.” Gerard told him sharply. 

“If you hurt or even touch or look at Peter the wrong way, I  _ will  _ kill you.” Chris snarled. 

“I have no interest in the boy.” Gerard scoffed. “I do want to discuss the Hales, however. Since they have something I want.”

“Peter is a Hale, I’m not buying it.” Chris didn’t budge an inch. 

While he was trying to focus on what they were saying Peter was distracted by Kate’s presence in the back yard as she balanced on the edge of the swimming pool. The Argent’s  living room had a sliding door that led to the back yard where there was a small pool and hot tub. 

She unnerved him and her cold eyes made him shiver.

At the same time, though, she was a beautiful girl his own age and he was a thirteen year old boy. He could grudgingly appreciate that beauty whatever else was contained within. Kate noticed him staring in her direction and turned. She wore a flippy pale yellow dress which barely concealed the knife in a holster on her leg. Blonde hair tumbled down her shoulders in waves and her small form was lithe and powerful. She wandered her way up to the window and watched him through it. 

Then she saw Allison behind him and gave a frustrated look. She stuck her nose up to the glass and breathed on it. In the resulting condensation she drew a heart. Peter watched as she put a P + K inside the heart and then gave him a wide, deliciously creepy smile. Peter felt something twist in his gut at the moment he realized he was attracted to her. Her smile widened. 

She knew. 

Victoria kept a gun pointed directly at her. 

“Mommy, who’s that? She’s very pretty, isn’t she Peter?” Allison was unconcerned by the gun in her mother’s hand as she gazed curiously at the girl in front of their backyard window.    
  
Peter could only nod. 

Kate wiggled her fingers in a wave at the toddler. 

“Stay where you are, Allison.” Victoria ordered. 

Allison knew better than to do anything other than comply.  

“Do you want me to take her upstairs?” Peter asked.

“Stay where you are, Peter.” Victoria instructed. “She’s more dangerous than she looks.”

Kate laughed softly, a sound that made Peter feel queasy and his body itch.  Her nails scratched deliberately on the glass. 

Peter shuddered. She was just trying to rattle him, she knew that it would hurt his ears. She knew exactly what he was. 

From what Chris had said Gerard had started training her when she was eight years old, unheard of in the hunter community. There was a process, a code. A way for children to cope with their destiny. He’d wanted the perfect leader. An Argent who could compare to the Argents of old. His experiment not only failed, it was well on the way to creating a psychopath. By the time Chris knew what was happening it was too late. Kate was a lot younger than him and Gerard vanished with her for a while to keep her away from him. 

There was a sharp whistle from the front of the house and Kate’s lips curled in annoyance. She put her hand flat out on the window and gave a small pout because she was having too much fun. 

Before he knew what he was doing, Peter had put his hand on the other side of the pane to the delight of Chris’ sister. He wasn’t sure why, something had made him do it. Something deep and primal. It wasn’t attraction, exactly, in the traditional sense. It was worse than that. His wolf wouldn’t let him ignore it. She was fire and he would burn under her touch but he couldn’t help it. 

The whistle came again and she gave another sound of annoyance. “See you soon, Petey.” She wiggled her fingers at him and skipped back to the front of the house. 

Victoria stared hard at him when he pulled away from the window and he lowered his eyes, ashamed. He’d disappointed her. She was angry. 

Chris walked back in while his friends stood guard outside. 

“Gerard is not going away.” He told Victoria.”He knows where the Hale Pack is hiding and he said that if we don’t help him he’ll release the information to the hunters that tried to wipe them out three years ago. He also says that they only reason they haven’t tried to take Peter is because Gerard told them not to.” 

Peter swallowed and Victoria lowered her gun to go pick up Allison from the floor.

“I don’t want him or Kate anywhere near Allison.” She told Chris gruffly.

“We don’t have a choice, Victoria.” Chris ran a hand through his hair. He looked at Peter and gazed at his wife. “He says that if I don’t help him on his current hunt not only will he tell the hunters where the Hale Pack is, he will tell them he doesn’t care what happens to Peter.” 

Victoria’s expression softened. 

“I’ll leave.” Peter said immediately. “I don’t want what happened to Kate to happen to Ally. You have done so much, I-”

“No,” Victoria shook her head. “You’re not going anywhere, Peter. Gerard will get back at us one way or another even if you do vanish. Is he expecting to stay here?” She gave Chris a hard look.

“No, at a motel.” Chris sighed. “He’s enrolled Kate at the school and expects Peter to keep an eye on her. That’s not all. There’s something he wants from the Hales. A book. He sure it’s still in the Hale House.” He looks at Peter. “He wants you to help him find it.” 

Peter bristled. He couldn’t go anywhere with that man. He shook his head quickly. “I can’t. I can’t...not alone.”

“I’ll be with you.” Chris assured him. 

Victoria lifted her head, “Chris, we need to talk. Peter take your sister upstairs and put her to bed. No listening in.” She gave him a warning look. “I’ll know.” 

Peter swallowed and nodded. “Yes, ma’am.” 

He took Allison from her and proceeded to do as instructed. His heart pounded in his head the entire time. He wasn’t sure what was going on. He felt like his body was shocked with waves of adrenalin after seeing Kate. It was not attraction. He wasn’t interested in kissing her, not like he liked kissing Bobby. Bobby. He needed to warn Bobby. 

Downstairs, Victoria made them both coffee. “Christopher. Peter told me today that Gerard was there when his mother died. I don’t want him going anywhere alone with him.”

Chris frowned at the news. “I’ll talk to Peter about it. We’ll get through this. But Victoria, there’s something else. The wolf at the clinic. She was forcibly bitten by a rogue Alpha who has apparently been biting people all across the county. We have a bigger problem on our hands.” 

Victoria sighed, “So that’s why he came back.” 

Chris nodded.

  
*TBC*


End file.
